SSI Archives

The Oglethorpe Hotel: A Lost Landmark

In 1888, Harper’s Weekly, an American news magazine, predicted that “Brunswick by the Sea” would become the winter Newport. The 1880s marked the beginning of the resort era in southeast Georgia as northerners traveled to the southern coast in search of warmer winters and leisure activities like hunting and fishing. The Jekyll Island Club, for example, was established in 1886 as a winter retreat by a group of America’s most prominent businessmen, including J.P. Morgan and William Rockefeller. Club members and other travelers

arriving by train sought suitable accommodations.

These visitors flocked to the Oglethorpe Hotel when its doors opened in 1888. Located between Newcastle Street and the train station to the west, the magnificent brick structure was three stories high. New York architect J.A. Wood designed the building in a Victorian revival style, featuring round towers and an ornate front piazza.

M. Rich and Bro. of Atlanta (forerunner of Rich’s Department Store) supplied all interior decorations with no two rooms being furnished alike. The elegant interior featured marble floors, crystal chandeliers and indoor plumbing. An artesian well supplied water for baths, the kitchen and the fire suppression system. Each floor was equipped with a fire hydrant, hose and alarms. The hotel was originally lighted with gas; however, arrangements for later installation of electrical lighting were made during construction.

After providing seventy years of gracious hospitality to visitors and local residents, the hotel was demolished in 1958. This month’s image of a hand-colored glass lantern slide of the hotel is from the Coastal Georgia Historical Society’s Margaret Davis Cate Collection.

Since its founding in 1965, the Coastal Georgia Historical Society’s archival collection has grown to over 15,000 historically important artifacts, documents and photographs.

Our monthly images on this page are from the vast archives of the Coastal Georgia Historical Society. The Society’s mission includes the “administration, restoration and maintenance of historic facilities and resources … preserved as a living part of the historical and cultural foundations of our coastal community.” Society facilities include the St. Simons Lighthouse and Museum, the A.W. Jones Heritage Center, and the Maritime Center (formerly the U.S. Coast Guard Station). To learn more about the Society, its diverse programs, and the benefits of Society membership, please call (912) 638.4666, or visit www.saintsimonslighthouse.org.